Academic writing can be so staid and boring. Especially if you don't really have a lot of interest in what you're reading. Some classmates and I were having a discussion about our theses the other night during a peer review session. They mentioned that, despite the fact that they would never really care about my topic for their own research, they liked what I wrote. Apparently, my enthusiasm about public transportation in Charlotte is fun to read. One of them noted that they could hear my voice speaking the words as they read the paper. But is this an accurate portrayal? These classmates know me, so familiarity would seemingly incline their opinion of my writing to be more favorable.
This makes me wonder--what is enjoyable reading? Is it writing aimed at mass audiences on the web? Or is it concisely-penned prose, regardless of its medium of publication? I think we can all agree that clear, gramatically-correct writing is best. However, what about style?
I put both my web and academic (i.e. my thesis) writing to the test at Writer's Diet. First, let's look at a paragraph from my thesis:
Yay, healthy writing! I try to incorporate some of my speaking style into my academic writing, only because I think that the inclusion of the author's personality makes the piece more relatable (as evidenced above in the first paragraph).
Now here's the results from the blog entry I posted earlier:
Hmm... I write my blog entries as if I were speaking, and I speak fast and exuberantly (with emphasis). Some of my other entries had earned Heart Attack status. Oops!
So how does my writing on this blog stand up to the Yahoo! Style Guide? First, I purposefully employ a vocally-relatable writing style here because I want this blog to be interesting and delightful. I also structured the blog name so my posts would directly tie in every time. I also use the "insert jump break" function so the front page isn't cluttered. You can read the first paragraph, decide that you MUST finish this wonderfully insightful entry, and then revel in the awesome knowledge you've attained. (Wow, that does seem great!)
But could I be more concise? Probably. But I hope that sacrificing "fit and trim" for exuberance is more fun to read... And keep reading.
Nouns need toning. I'd have to see what you put in there, but I think there's something to be learned from this exercise about writing for the web. You can be irreverent without sacrificing good writing. Interesting post! KLC
ReplyDeleteI wish I did remember what paragraph from my thesis I used. I tend to be a rambler when writing for non-academic purposes.
ReplyDeleteHere it is! I used the second paragraph of my first chapter.
ReplyDeleteToo bad the common experience of the streetcar wasn’t this romantic scene we all picture. When the ceremonial last running of the streetcar took place in Charlotte on March 15, 1938, the newspaper did not run headlines lamenting the end of a golden era. Crowds did not tearfully bid the streetcar goodbye. At the ceremony, Dr. Luther Little of the First Baptist Church declared, “This is not a funeral, but a resurrection marking the beginning of a new and better means of transportation that keeps time with the march of progress.” Progress was the key word, a sentiment endlessly echoed by both citizen and corporation. As Duke Power Magazine extravagantly stated, Charlotte had out-grown the streetcar system, “and progress called!” The streetcar was an outdated mode of transportation—noisy, uncomfortable, and inefficient. Public support for buses had grown since their introduction to Charlotte in September 1934, when a feeder line connecting the Dilworth streetcar with Hawthorne Lane began operation. The General Mecklenburg editorial column of the Charlotte Observer lauded their introduction, citing the buses as “an improvement that I am convinced is greatly appreciated by the patrons of the service and by citizens generally, because of the elimination of noise and the tendency to improve traffic conditions on congested streets.” The streetcar may have received a fond farewell, but Charlotteans were glad to see it go.